The Danville girls’ basketball team won a tight one against Hayes, but fell in another nail biter to Mount Gilead last week.
Danville took on Hayes in front of a home crowd on Dec. 4 and Addison Mickley had a dominant first half and finished the game with 24 points. In the first quarter she went off for nine of the team’s 13 points, but Hayes was still able to jump out to a 17-13 lead. Both teams scored 14 points, and it was a 31-27 lead for Hayes at the half. Mickley had 15 points to lead the charge.
In the third quarter the Blue Devils outscored Hayes 19-16 and then 19-13 in the fourth. Ella Proper had a big second half from the free throw line with 12 makes. She was 14-for-16 from the line in the win, with all her points coming from free throws. As a team the Danvilles were 26-for-36 from the free throw line, proving to be a key to the win.
Kylee Hess had 13 points, and was 5-for-5 from the line. Grace Gronberg had six points, Brooklyn Staats scored three points and Brookelynn Carter had two points.
The Pacers were led by Adrianna Brown’s game high 26 points, which included three from deep. Hannah West hit double figures with 10 points for Hayes.
Mount Gilead was a big early test for Danville, as the Indians are coming off the KMAC winning campaign last winter. The Blue Devils hung tough through and through, but the Indians walked away with a 53-50 win.
Mount Gilead had a 6-2 lead in the first, but Proper snagged a loose ball for a a steal. They then went on a 5-0 run to take the lead, highlighted by a three by Jaylyn Smith off an assist by Proper. Hess also had a steal for the Blue Devils in the first quarter, but Mount Gilead was able to rally and take a 18-9 lead at the end of one.
In the second quarter Danville had a 10-8 advantage, and it was a 26-19 Mount Gilead lead at halftime. Proper, Smith and Kelsey Hackman had a steal apiece for the Blue Devils in the second quarter.
In the third quarter the Indians jumped out to a 29-19 lead but Hess scored on a fast break layup to get within eight points. Mickley had a block int he quarter, rejecting a corner three.
The drama came in the final frame, when Staats nailed a three from the corner off an inbound pass by Proper, tying tie the game 50-50. The Indians were able to put three more on the board and close out a win.
The Indians had three players in double figures, led by Danielle Pohlkotte with 17 points. Faith White and Greer Simpson each had 11 points.
Hess led the Blue Devils with 12 points to go with seven steals on defense. Mickley added eight points. Staats had the clutch three and also had two steals. Smith put up seven points and two steals. Proper had six points and five steals.
Mount Gilead struggled from three at 17% but hit 51% of their total shots. They also had a 36-22 rebounding advantage, and led 12-7 in assists. Danville’s defense was able to get 18 steals and the Indians had seven steals as a team. Mount Gilead had four blocks to one for Danville. The Blue Devils once again relied on excellent free throw shooting, going 10-for-11 from the line.
